Laryngeal Paraganglioma: A Review Article.
In 1994, Ferlito et al2 suggested that some reported cases of laryngeal paraganglioma were in fact atypical carcinoid tumors, carcinoid tumors or small cell neuroendocrine carcinomas and accepted 62 of the total reported cases as that of paraganglioma. Paragangliomas are rare neuroendocrine tumors that originate from paraganglion cells located in the sub-mucosal layer of the larynx.
There was a family history of the reported medical condition in 7% of the patients. 13% of the patients indicated the symptoms of multiple paraganglioma, carotid body tumor being the most common associated form of paraganglioma. The mean size of the supraglottic tumor was 2.82 cm,
while the mean size of subglottic tumor was 1.91 cm. Using t-test, the mean size of supraglottic tumor was significantly higher than the mean size of the subglottic tumor (p<0.05).
MRI is the imaging technique of choice for the diagnosis of laryngeal paraganglioma. Laryngeal paraganglioma shows high T1-enhancement of the lesion after gadolinium injection. Some authors have also advocated the application of preoperative arteriography in combination with selective embolization, in order to reduce intraoperative blood loss to assess the blood supply. Laryngeal paraganglioma usually appear as a non-homogenous tumor receiving blood supply from the superior laryngeal artery, which is a branch of the superior thyroid artery. Like other neuroendocrine tumours, paragangliomas express somatostatin receptors, which may be visualized using somatostatin receptor scintigraphy. Performing a In-111 pentetreotide scan can confirm the neuroendocrine characters of the observed mass. Laryngeal paragangliomas are rare benign neuroendocrine tumors located mostly in the supraglottic area.
Otolaryngol Open J. 2017; SE(6): S1-S10. doi:10.17140/OTLOJ-SE-6-101
